


You want a hug?

by joyful_soul_collector



Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo [3]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Anti-Starker, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hurt Peter Parker, Hurt/Comfort, Mood Swings, NOT STARKER - Freeform, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Gets a Hug, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Whump, Peter Parker is a Mess, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Touch-Starved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:08:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25993417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joyful_soul_collector/pseuds/joyful_soul_collector
Summary: Sometimes, Peter gets this really tight ache in his chest. He has no idea why. It usually happens on bad days, days where Flash took things a little too far, days where he missed Uncle Ben just a little too much, days where he hadn’t slept a wink for fear of nightmares. Those were when it hurt the most.But sometimes, he’ll be having a perfectly normal day and it would suddenly just… happen. His mood plummets, his limbs feel like lead, and the horrible ache in his chest starts again. Aunt May said it was mood swings, and that all teenagers get them, but that didn’t make them any easier to deal with.ORBad Things Happen Bingo: Touch Starved
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1803421
Comments: 34
Kudos: 386





	You want a hug?

**Author's Note:**

> TWs: None
> 
> Requested by [@teammightypen](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/teammightypen) on tumblr!

Sometimes, Peter gets this really tight ache in his chest. He has no idea why. It usually happens on bad days, days where Flash took things a little too far, days where he missed Uncle Ben just a little too much, days where he hadn’t slept a wink for fear of nightmares. Those were when it hurt the most. 

But sometimes, he’ll be having a perfectly normal day and it would suddenly just… happen. His mood plummets, his limbs feel like lead, and the horrible ache in his chest starts again. Aunt May said it was mood swings, and that all teenagers get them, but that didn’t make them any easier to deal with. 

This was, apparently, one of those days. And it was even worse because he was actually having a _good_ day. Not an average day, an actually _good_ one! History test-- _nailed it_ (despite history being his least favorite subject), found a mechanical pencil just _lying there_ in the hallway (it was one of those fancy ones where you click the side instead of the top), _AND_ Mr. Delmar had premade Peter’s favorite sandwich so he didn’t have to wait for it (apparently he’d caught on to the fact that Peter was always _starving_ after school and didn’t want his favorite customer to be practically trembling with hunger as he waited for his food to be prepared). 

But for some reason, as soon as Peter had finished his sandwich, his mood suddenly took an extreme downturn. That’s the opposite of what usually happens when he had his favorite afterschool meal. 

Peter was sitting on his favorite rooftop when it happened, staring out over New York as he ate. Now he felt oddly sick of the sight. Just mustering up the energy to climb down the wall to the sidewalk made him feel drained. He decided to take the subway instead of webbing his way to the tower, even if it took twice as long. There was just no way he’d be able to swing himself there. 

Not when he suddenly felt like he could burst into tears at any moment. 

Peter did his best to keep his composure for the whole subway ride and subsequent walk to the tower. When he walked through the doors and was eventually greeted by Tony and the rest of the Avengers, he only mumbled a small “Hi.” He was terrified that if he spoke any louder he’d start crying, and honestly didn’t feel like having a meltdown in front of everyone. He pretended not to notice their concern as he quickly made his way to his room. 

As soon as his door was shut behind him, the hole-like ache in his chest seemed to swell, pushing tears out of his eyes and making sobs bubble in his throat. Peter sat with a _flump_ on his bed, gripping the blankets in his fists so hard it hurt, trying desperately to calm himself down. 

But nothing worked. 

Every time he tried his breathing exercises a bout of sobs interrupted him, he couldn’t seem to focus on anything in the room long enough to ground himself, he even just tried to tell himself “it’s okay” over and over again, but it felt like a lie every time. 

So instead, he just squeezed his eyes shut, feeling helpless to stop the ache from spreading to his shoulders and arms.

It was only when his door creaked open that he looked up, sobs ceasing for a moment out of confusion. It was Tony. 

“Pete?” he said, stepping into the room and shutting the door. Peter tried to wipe away the tears before Tony saw, but it was too late. “Oh no, Peter what happened? Are you okay?”

He quickly came over and sat next to Peter, eyes scanning him over, clearly looking for the injuries Peter always had a nasty habit of hiding. 

“I don’t even know,” Peter said, barely summoning the energy to talk above a whisper. “I was just eating my sandwich on the rooftop and suddenly everything felt just _bad_ and _draining_ and _miserable_ and--” He cut off with another sob. 

“Aw kid, I’m so sorry, that really sucks,” Tony said. “I had bad mood swings like that when I was your age too. Doesn’t help with all the stuff you’ve been through either, I’m sure… You want a hug?”

As soon as he said that, Peter felt like a switch had flicked on in his head. He suddenly really, _really_ wanted a hug. No, he _needed_ a hug. The feeling was so strong that he didn’t even reply, he practically tackled Tony, who gave a small laugh of surprise. 

“Jeez, you're really not feeling good, are you?”

“I… can’t remember the last time I got a hug,” Peter said. He hadn’t actually realized it until he said it out loud, but it was true. He truly couldn’t remember the last time he’d been hugged. Hell, he could barely remember the last time he was _touched in general_. Maybe MJ had shoved him playfully last week? _Maybe_?

“ _What?_ Oh jeez, no wonder you feel like shit, you’re probably touch-starved out of your mind, kid,” Tony said, suddenly squeezing Peter a little tighter. 

“I’m what?” Peter said, his voice still trembling a little. 

“Touch-starved. Most of the time, people need touch to feel happy and safe, but if someone goes too long without a hug or even something as small as a handshake, it can make you feel depressed and sad. Most people need physical affection, and going too long without it means that you’re touch starved.”

“Oh… I didn’t even know that was a thing,” Peter said, suddenly feeling a little stupid. “So what, I’m just freaking out because I haven’t gotten a hug in a while? That sounds dramatic.”

“Heh, believe me, it’s not. It’s something a lot of teenagers go through, especially here in the US. Too many people here seem to think that physical affection is only for people in a romantic relationship. It’s especially hard for boys, since we’re taught that giving and receiving affection makes us less masculine. And of course, god forbid we be anything but the most manly man of all time. How often do you feel like this kid?”

Peter thought for a moment, head still pressed to Tony’s chest. 

“Umm… a lot I think. Once or twice a week? Maybe more, but I dunno.”

Tony sighed, running his hands through Peter’s hair now. Peter relaxed even further, leaning into his hand. 

“Sorry I didn’t realize kid. Probably should’ve noticed, I felt the same way when I was your age,” Tony said. 

“It’s ok, even _I_ didn’t know what was wrong,” Peter said into Tony’s shirt. 

“What do you say to watching some movies and snuggling on the couch?” Tony said. Peter looked up, a shadow of nervousness entering his mind. 

“Is… is that okay?” 

Tony gave him a sympathetic smile and ruffled his hair. 

“Yeah, kid. Fun fact, you’re allowed to like hugs and cuddles, no matter what anyone says. C’mon, let’s go watch some Star Wars or somethin’.”

Tony and Peter ended up watching movies late into the night, and Rhodey walked in the next day to find Peter asleep on Tony’s lap, Tony’s fingers in his hair as though he’d fallen asleep giving Peter a scalp massage. Rhodey laughed and set about making breakfast for them, deciding to let them sleep in just a little bit longer.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you all enjoyed this! Feel free to comment your favorite part down below, and go ahead and follow me on tumblr [@joyful-soul-collector](https://joyful-soul-collector.tumblr.com/)! I'm taking prompts as well as bingo squares there!


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